He could have become yet another ordinary child doing some odd jobs after dropping out of school at the age of 13, had his love for computers not come to his rescue.

Today, he is one of the most sought-after cyber security experts in India. And his clientele include various premier investigation agencies, who come to him to get his assistance on cases related to cyber crime.

“When I was a kid, my father used to get me toys and gadgets. Being a curious kid, I would cut them open to understand how they worked,” Ludhiana-born Trishneet Arora told Startagist. “I even ripped open the toys my elder brother used to get, out of curiosity.”

His curiosity grew stronger when he got a computer at the age of 11. This device was an opening for his entry into the vast world of cyber security.

“This computer was my life and my interest in this gadget grew by the day. I learnt all about computing, hardware, and internet. To acquire more knowledge, I used to read a lot of books and watched videos,” he explained.

But his parents were not supportive of his new-found passion and they wanted him to excel in studies rather than follow his dream and passion. But he was not the one who could easily be cajoled. He spent most of his times on this gadget.

As a result, he failed in the final exams in the 8th standard. He then dropped out of school and completed his class X through distant learning.

Over the next few years, Arora’s love for technology grew even stronger and he used to be engrossed for hours learning about gadgets. Within two years, he amassed a lot of information about computer systems, internet, basics of IT infrastructure and little bit of coding.

Gradually, he learned the basics of hacking. In 2012, he realised that there was a huge demand for ethical hackers in the country. But rather than being just another hacker, he wanted to give back to people in terms of what he knew about hacking and security frameworks.

He got calls and invitations from various schools and colleges to conduct training and workshops on cyber security. He also got an opportunity to address students at IIT Roorkie, which led to corporate trainings.

This was a breakthrough in Arora’s life. Sensing a huge opportunity in cyber security, he  started TAC Security Solutions, a cyber security startup, in 2013 in Chandigarh. “While cyber security is an vital factor for enterprises, it is often neglected in today’s scenario. We are trying to make a difference to governmental and private organisations security infrastructure and create awareness on security challenges,” he added.

TAC Security is now a leading cyber security startup in India. It has now grown beyond India and provides protection to corporations against network vulnerabilities and data theft. It also provides cyber security training to the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI), India’s premier investigative agency, in addition to the Punjab Police, Gujarat Police, Reliance Industries Limited, Amul, Ralson (India), and Avon Cycles. Outside of India, it now also has clients in Dubai and the UK.

TAC recently rolled out TAC-CERT to help those whose websites, emails, cloud data, and other digital assets, from getting hacked. The company also received funding from Vijat Kedia, MD of Kedia Securities.

“”We are now in talks with VCs to raise more than $10 million in Series A to expand our business and launch new products,” he concluded.

Now, at the age of 23, he has already accomplished a whole lot things that his peers could not even dream of. He has also three books on hacking: The Hacking Era, Hacking Talk, and Hacking With Smart Phones.

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